A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for indicating the current ancestor hierarchy in a graphical user interface while scrolling through a tree structure. A determination is made as to the current ancestor hierarchy of an item displayed in a designated section of the tree structure. The designated section of the tree structure may be the topmost, bottommost, or any other file or directory displayed in the pane. When user searches for files or folders by scrolling through data displayed in a tree structure, a new item may be displayed in the designated section of the tree structure. As a result, the ancestor hierarchy display is updated with the current ancestor hierarchy for the item in the designated section of the tree structure.